The New Hamato Clan
by leggo lover 99
Summary: A story focusing on the turtles as they get older, find someone to love and have kids. Sounds soppy, but is NOT just "ooh, I'm in love smoochy smoochy!" Trust me - I'm not a fan of sap. Join this tale to see the shock of parenthood and the adventures little mutants can get up too - all resulting in very stressed turtles! Cover image by Midnight-Clematis on DA. READ AND REVIEW!
1. Prologue

**So this will be a story focusing on a large band of OCs I have come up with and will be looking at their start in life, how their parents became a couple and the reactions of the other TMNT to a new member of the clan.**

 **Please review and let me know your thoughts!**

 **Prologue**

Like everything else, it started with a fight. Leo had been running a training session for his brothers, allowing their aging sensei to take a break from his now aching bones and watch rather than demonstrate. The eldest had criticised Raphael's form, ordering the correct position to be taken up, yet either due to built up tension or some private unsettled argument, Raph finally snapped, lashing out at his brother. Up to that stage, all was usual. Then Raph touched upon the sensitive subject of Karai who had been missing from the city for almost three years since her mutation. That was the final straw for Leo and his calm and authoritive demeanour crumbled releasing the destructive anger hidden beneath.

Before anyone could stop him, the eldest had unsheathed his katana and engaged the equally furious hot head. Splinter was forced to order his other two sons to restrain the two eldest turtles and calm them down separately.

Mikey, who had pulled Raph from the dojo, had easily calmed the fiery temper of his sibling with a carefully refined mix of words and hugs, Raph had regained his senses and admitted how out of order he had been. He had even been ready to talk to Leo and apologise, yet in the dojo, there was a very different story.

Donnie had caught Leo and had barely held the leader back until Splinter had managed to assist by paralysing the young leader through the use of pressure points – something he had never believed he would have to use at their current age of nineteen. Leo had refused point blank to talk to his directly younger brother and argued that Raph was too insensitive to respect his brothers' opinions. He stated that he wouldn't speak to Raph until he admitted how out of line he had been, but Splinter pointed out he was being childish and should accept his brother's faults in order to move on.

For the first time in his life Hamato Leo refused the advice of his sensei.

The tension grew thick around the lair with the eldest refusing to talk to his red banded brother and their Sensei soon realised he would need to intervene when Leo took a spar too far against his brother, almost cutting his face with his sword. The old rat was forced to call Leo into his room for an in depth discussion about his behaviour.

Within this talk, many things were revealed about Splinter's son. The ninja master learnt how self-doubt was crippling the leader's ability to make certain decisions and he had succumb to serious depression which had even moved Leo to the point of self-harm. Even more troubling was the fact that Leo had hidden all this from his family for the last couple of years and had been swallowed by guilt regarding Splinter's daughter's mutation and disappearance.

While revealing the issues restricting his tortured mind, Leo broke down, all his stress emerging in a single moment of time, before his father. Splinter had listened with patience, allowing his son to struggle through his confession, yet as he took a final shuddering breath before falling silent for his sensei's judgement, the old rat offered his decision. He told his son to take a pilgrimage to South America where he would learn how to balance his duty as leader and his role as a brother and son alone – without the distractions of city life. He would remain there for the next six months before returning home with a fresh outlook of his life. He would leave straight away.

Of course - due to the current situation regarding Raph - Splinter believed it best if he left immediately allowing the rat to inform the others in the morning, however he was pleased to hear Leonardo's request to write a letter for his brothers, apologising for his unbalanced behaviour and for his grudge against Raph.

Once the letter was written, Splinter helped his son prepare for the journey and together, the two mutants left the lair without the other turtles seeing and headed towards the airport.

Within an hour, Splinter had watched his son sneak into a plane and seen it take off, carrying away a broken spirit towards the unknown. Of course the rat regretted his decision, yet deep in his heart, he knew that without such intervention – his son would never allow himself to heal the deep scars which had marked his mind, and every moment his son spent focusing on his failures, the more likely he was to lead his brothers into disaster.

By the time Splinter had pulled himself away from watching the receding speck of silver of the plane and made his way back through the sewer system to his home, it was almost morning. As his sons had trudged into the dojo for their morning practise, they had noticed their eldest brother's absence and knew something was wrong. Splinter had handed them the letter and watched as his sons grew upset, shocked and angry at their master's decision – all the emotions the old rat was feeling within himself.

Such angry soon melted away and was replaced by sadness and a longing to see their sibling once more, to work out old arguments and start everything anew, and it was in such a haze that the six months of Leo's solo training passed. On the date of his return, Mikey ordered the lair to be cleaned and for a party to be organised for his big bro's arrival – yet nobody came back.

Mikey spent an entire week listening for any footsteps approaching the lair, praying that he would get to see his brother again, yet after this time – the old feelings returned anew with added worry. That was, up until the day Slash entered the lair with a letter from Central America. Inside was a quick explanation to Slash asking if he could bring the letter to the lair and another envelope from Leo.

The letter was vague, yet it apologised for not coming back soon. He said he had business to attend to before he returned, yet he was not sure how long it would take. He also apologised for his actions six months ago and assured them he was ready to come back and make things right, yet he needed to be certain that the time was right to return for there was a " _situation_ " he was currently dealing with and he couldn't leave it now.

So once again, the brothers were forced to wait, unaware of what the _situation_ was and how much of a shock it would be when Leo eventually returned home to explain everything.

 **Sounds a bit like TMNT 2007 right?! But It is more based on the 2012 version. Let me know your thoughts in a review! More to come soon!**

 **LL99 Out.**


	2. The Return

**Chapter 1: The Return**

 **General P.O.V**

"So… When do you think he'll be back?"

Suddenly all movement around the lair froze and all eyes turned to Mikey who was staring at a comic on the floor. Donnie and Raph shot each other a look. These sort of conversations never went well.

"We don't know, Mikey." Donnie closed his laptop and moved it to the side, knowing that once the topic of Leo was brought up, he wouldn't be able to focus on any of his projects for the rest of the day. Raph sunk further into the beanbag, his jaw tightening – just as shaken as Donnie. As the reason for Leo's absence, Raph blamed himself for his brother staying away for such as a long time, so chose to stay out of all conversations regarding the eldest turtle – knowing that if he joined the discussion, he would break down in tears or end up punching someone.

"But it's been a year!" Mikey jumped to his feet, his blue eyes shimmering with unshed tears as his voice continued to rise, "Why hasn't he come back? I just want my brother back! I JUST WANT MY BROTHER BACK!" Before Mikey could let out any more of his anguish, Donatello pushed himself off the bench and threw himself at his baby brother, holding the trembling turtle close as he began to sob. From beneath the embrace, a broken voice emerged, "Doesn't he love us anymore?" Donnie felt his heart break. He hated the way his brother's training period had affected Mikey, hated the fact the youngest was forced to question his brother's love and hated these moments when all this doubt came crushing down.

"He does love us, Mikey." Donnie soothed, rubbing circles on his brother's shell, "He does…" Then, almost to himself, he muttered, "He has to…" And before he could stop himself, he was crying too. Behind, he heard Raph move over, and the current eldest wrapped his strong arms around the two younger turtles, offering the comfort they all so desperately wanted.

"Face it guys," Raph's voice was gruff as if he too was fighting back tears, "Leo ain't coming back anytime soon… Splinter sent him off to train and we know how seriously he takes-" A sudden beeping cut Raph off and without a word, he darted to the wall beside the lair entrance, sais out ready. Donnie quickly wiped his eyes, and stood in front of his only younger brother, protective instincts taking over. Something had triggered the proximity alarm and whatever it was had to be close.

Between the beeping, footsteps were heard, and from the pit, Donnie could see Raph tense, ready to attack. The figure emerged from the shadows and Raph lunged, sai out – but before he could strike, everyone froze.

"Dude…" Mikey breathed from behind Donnie's leg.

"Talk about good timing." Donnie felt a smile tugging at his mouth despite the anger building up deep inside.

The figure stepped back so he was a safe difference from the lethal end of Raph's sai and nervously shrugged.

"Um… New security system?" The air froze as the brothers took in the unexpected visitor – accepting he was real, when with a shout, Mikey darted across the room and threw himself around Leo's neck, sobbing into his plastron.

"I missed you." His voice muttered through the tears, causing the eldest to smile. Leo wrapped his arms around his youngest brother and closed his eyes briefly.

"I missed you too, little brother."

As the two embraced, Donnie noticed how different his brother now looked after a long year away from them, his arms were much more defined with thick coils of muscle snaking from his neck down to his wrists and his legs were in a similar condition, yet in Don's critical gaze, he would conclude that there was not just evidence of training, but clear signs of stress. Leo had always been trim, but now Don would class him as slightly underweight and there were even the first signs of worry lines in around his eyes and across his forehead. There were also what looked like teeth marks up his arms, making the second youngest wonder what had befallen his brother.

While Mikey was busy hugging his missing brother and Donnie was analysing his physical condition, Raphael was too shocked to move. Well, almost.

"Um, not that we're not pleased to see you, bro." Raph began, putting his weapons back in his belt and stepping forth, "But where the SHELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!" His voice exploded, causing Leo to release Mikey with a guilty look on his face. Fearing another confrontation like before, Donnie quickly regained his senses and stepped out of the pit, moving towards his brothers.

"I have to agree, Leo. An explanation would be appreciated." Amazed at how level his voice was holding despite his anger running parallel to Raph's, the genius trusted himself to continue, "I mean, it's been an entire _year_ and we've had no letters. Why? Why have you done this to us –" He felt his voice begin to tremble, so stopped suddenly, determined not to lose his cool straight away. All that could come later.

The eldest met all their gazes, and Donatello could see how washed out and, in short – _exhauste_ d – his brother appeared.

"I'm sorry… Really – I am…" Leo shook his head and smiled slightly to himself, "But I couldn't come back when I wanted to… This may be difficult to take in, but… I didn't come back alone."

He turned and looked back out the entrance, where another figure was standing.

"Seriously?" Raph exploded as he realised who it was, "That's your excuse?"

Karai smiled and placed the basket she was carrying at Leo's feet, then took his hand.

"Nice to see you too, Raphael." She turned back to Leo and just like the eldest turtle, it was obvious she too had changed since they last saw her. She was much more tanned, her skin now olive in tone while her face bearing the similar signs of stress as Leo's. "I thought you told them I was coming." The eldest shrugged.

"I could only send a letter to Slash's base, and they don't visit the guys every day." He turned back to his brothers, "I found Karai when I was training – she'd gone upstate after we last saw her and was losing herself. I helped her to come back. She's no longer the enemy," he added after noticing Raph's glare. Beside him, Karai nodded.

"I was hoping me and Miwa could come and stay here. At least for a while…" Donnie and Raph swapped a glance.

"Miwa? Isn't that you, or am I missing something here, princess?" Raph snapped, a pulse clearly bulging on his temple. Leo raised a hand.

"She prefers Karai, Raph." As he began to explain how Karai didn't believe herself worthy of the name Splinter had given her, Mikey's attention began to wander focusing on more interesting things, like what the jungle was like, why Leo had taken so long to come home, or even what was in the basket? Hampers like those usually meant one thing – _food!_ Quickly checking no one was paying him any attention, Mikey crept backwards and subtly tapped the basket back with him. As he did so, he noticed the blanket coving it move. Could it be Leo had found a pet?! The possibilities were getting too much for the youngest turtle, so in one quick movement he pulled the basket right back and lifting it, he dashed off to his room to uncover the mysteries hidden within.

Once his door was closed, he poked the blanket, and there was a soft moan – almost a snore. Outside he heard a sudden raised voice but he didn't pay it much attention. With one quick movement he whipped off the blanket and froze as he took in what was hidden within.

"Ho-ly chalupa!" He gulped. For once, he was almost too shocked for words… Wait till the guys saw this!

 **DUN DUN DUN!**

 **What's in the basket?!**

 **Who's Miwa?!**

 **Will anyone review?!**

 **LL99 out!**


	3. The Reveal

**Chapter 2: The Reveal**

 **Author's Note** **:** _If you want to see a drawing of Miwa,_ _ **check out TalonMoon133 on DeviantArt**_ _for a sketch. It's my old profile, and I am ashamed of the art quality, but it can give you a general idea of what my little OC looks like!_

 **Donnie P.O.V**

As soon as Leo had finished explaining why Karai was now Karai, Raph repeated the original question.

"Who the shell is Miwa then?"

Leo actually blushed, but before he could speak – Karai made a strangled noise, looking towards Leo's feet.

"The basket! Where's it gone?" Honestly, Donnie never expected to hear the former assassin to make such a panicked noise. Especially over a basket. Man, this was all getting a bit too weird.

They all turned to look and in a moment, it became apparent where it must have disappeared to. Mikey had gone – so must have the basket.

Donnie was about to point this out when Mikey's bedroom door slammed open and the youngest came pelting out holding a – a…

"LEO'S A DADDY!" Mikey cried a huge grin plastered across his face. In his arms was a small mutant- a half turtle-half snake – as far as Donnie could make out at a glance. The scientist turned quickly to his eldest brother – expecting an explanation or a laugh dismissing the bizarre claim yet Leo was silent – his face bright red. Beside him, Karai looked ready to murder Mikey.

Oh shell…

Mikey looked absolutely overjoyed at the discovery while Raph's mouth was hanging open. Donnie guessed his own expression was something similar. Leo and Karai had… They'd… The child was… It was all too much to compute.

"She's so cute! Look! Look!" The youngest rocked the tiny baby with each word, allowing everyone to get a good look at her.

Miwa – from the waist up at least – appeared just like Donnie and his brothers had when they were younger, just with blue markings above her eyes like Karai's red eyeliner and she clearly had Leo's head shape. It was only when the child yawned could Donnie catch a glimpse of the snake like tongue and fangs concealed with the mouth. The shell had various cracks and indents around the edges, suggesting some sort of trauma, yet under the shell line, the turtle was not a turtle. The child's plastron merged with scales, and instead of legs, Miwa had a serpent's tail – obviously inherited from Karai's mutant side.

Eventually Donnie could find some words.

"So you and Karai…"

"Oh for goodness sake!" Karai cursed, quickly moving forward and snatching her child back from Mikey. "Yes, me and Leo are together and have had a child. You know, Leo isn't as innocent as you believe." She snapped, causing the eldest turtle's cheeks to turn a deep shade of red. "We're all adults here, so you need to grow up!" Donnie hurriedly changed tact before Karai could bring up any of their personal lives – which was highly likely, considering the evil glint in the mother's eye.

"So she's called Miwa?" At this, Leo seemed to recover from his embarrassment as well.

"Um, yeah. We chose Miwa to allow her to have the sort of life Shredder took away from Karai…" The eldest turtle looked at the child in Karai's arms, "I mean, being a mutant isn't an easy life, but we hoped…" He faded off, his face uncharacteristically expressive and Donnie knew both he and Mikey were wondering the same thing – how a child could change their brother so. Raph was still staring at the scene in disbelief, so Donnie couldn't tell if he was thinking along the same lines, or if he was still attempting to compute what was going on, but the scientist moved forward and put a hand on his brother's shoulder.

"You can't choose not to give her a life just because she's a mutant. She's a Hamato. This lifestyle is in her blood – you'll see." Leo raised his eyes and smiled at his brother. Mikey threw an arm around the two of them,

"Plus, she's super cute. Splinter will love her!"

The air froze. Donnie cast his elder brother a look.

"So does Splinter even know?" Leo's face said it all. If his brothers hadn't had a letter about Miwa, then Splinter wouldn't have received one either.

"How are we going to tell him?" Mikey whispered, suddenly conscious of how loud he had been yelling beforehand.

"He knows about Karai, but I don't think he knows anything else…" Leo swapped a look with his partner, yet as soon as the words left his mouth – a shadow fell over the group.

"What do I not know?"

Looking at Leo's expression, his fear was obvious. His eyes were wide and Donnie would swear he saw a bead of sweat run down his face. With a gulp, Leo spun around to face their father. Donnie took a step backwards just as a precaution in case Splinter got angry. In this situation – the genius couldn't figure out how the old rat would react. Sure, his brothers had spoken about the possibility of having children, yet that was only in passing as a joke. To have one of them turn up after a year away with an actual child was something else. Plus the fact that said child was the offspring of Splinter's long lost daughter and his (admittedly non-biological) son… In short – Donnie didn't want to be too close to Leo in case Splinter reacted badly…

"Sensei! I… uh…" Leo spluttered, "I'm sorry I didn't come back sooner – but, uh…" Splinter's eyes darted across to Karai, and then widened slightly at the sight of little Miwa.

"See Sensei!" Mikey butted in, causing Donnie to face palm, "Leo's a DAD!" The rat glared at the youngest turtle then turned back to Leo, who at this stage appeared to be silently wishing to be engulfed by the earth to save any more humiliation.

"Leonardo." His voice was strict, yet there was no indication to whether he was disappointed, shocked or any other emotion. "Please explain."

The eldest squared his shoulders, and met their father's eyes.

"I stayed away because Karai was pregnant. She became unpredictable because of her mutation, so we thought it best to stay away from others until the child was born and to ensure both she and Karai were safe to come back home." Karai placed a hand on the turtle's shoulder and Miwa reached out for her father who gladly took her up. The young mutant wrapped her tail around Leo's shoulders and nuzzled into his neck.

"Don't worry father, we both wanted her." Karai supported her partner, "We decided on the name Miwa." Leo shared a look with her and smiled, causing a stab of envy in Donnie's heart. He and the others had mocked Leo when he had first met Karai, calling him an idiot and referring to him as a love sick puppy – yet here he was with someone who clearly shared genuine feelings and holding a child who should not be biologically possible. He just wished he and April could be like that…

"I understand if you wish to remove me from the clan." Leo picked up, shocking his brothers, "But it was _both_ of our decisions. We love our daughter and we hoped she could grow up with her family around her. Isn't that what we've been fighting for?" He paused and placed his own hand on top of Karai's. "What do you wish for my family?"

With a sigh, Splinter closed his eyes for a long moment, yet when he opened his eyes, they had softened.

"I cannot say I am not surprised, yet I understand how vital it is to cherish one's family." He placed his paws on both of his children's shoulders. "My only word of warning, is that if you raised this child in the open spaces of the jungle, she will not forget the light so easily. She must learn the importance of the shadows to be safe." Both parents nodded.

It was at this moment Miwa opened her eyes once more and took in the new face close to her. She blinked then reached out with a toothy grin.

"Spinta!" She cheered, and Donnie was certain he was about to witness Splinter cry. Their sensei's eyes grew moist and a gentle smile formed on his lips. He reached out, silently asking Leo to hold his granddaughter, and with a nod of approval, he carefully took up the child.

"It has been many years since I held a baby girl." He muttered fondly, then turned around to face the kitchen. "Come. I believe we have much to discuss."

"Yeah, like how this is scientifically possible since mutants are supposed to be infertile." Donnie muttered to himself, earning a glare from Karai.

Taking a look over his shoulder, Donnie saw Mikey move closer to the still frozen Raph. Leaning close, Mike whispered

"Imagine what it would be like if you and Mona had kids." The scientist stifled a laugh and followed Leo towards the kitchen, not before he heard a thump. Spinning back, he saw Raph lying on the floor, his eyes rolled back into his head.

 _Oh boy._ Donnie sighed, leaving Mikey to tend to the weakling, _life is about to get interesting_ …

 **So Leo and Karai have little Miwa. Thank you for all your support and I hope you continue reading as the family begins to grow! Let me know if you want me to include the Mighty Mutanimals in this story as well?! I have a whole list of pairings and children as well as new enemies in this crazy AU, but I'll write whatever you want to hear!**

 **Coming up soon:**

 **Leo and Raph try and catch up yet a certain child keeps interrupting!**


	4. Of Talks and Interruptions

**Chapter 3**

 **Of Talks and Interruptions**

 **Leo P.O.V**

It had to be around five in the morning, but ever since his return to New York, his body clock had been thrown out of sync – be it the change in environment, or the new experience of being a father – and it meant Leo had grudgingly taken change of Miwa first thing in the morning, allowing Karai to get some rest. And that was the reason he was now in the dojo.

After the first night home, the eldest turtle had awoken at the early hour and taken the dozing Miwa out to the pit so not to disturb his family – however, once the child had decided it was time to awaken, her constant babbling and sliding about the floor had caught Splinter's attention so he told his son that two mutants could spend the morning in the dojo, where the carpeted area would minimise the noise of the child.

Since helping Karai regain her sanity, Leo barely had time for excessive training sessions, so these free hours allowed him time to return to his old way of life, however, with every couple of steps, two small arms wrapped around one of his legs and occasionally, a couple of teeth found their way into his skin, making him wince.

The third time this happened, Leo had to abandon his kata and knelt down next to Miwa, her blue eyes narrowed slightly.

"Play." She demanded, opening her mouth slightly, revealing her teeth. Leo smiled. At only a year old, his little girl already understood how to try and get what she wanted. Unfortunately her father _was_ a ninja – and a stubborn one at that, so was not so willing to give in so easily.

"What do you want, little one?" He teased. Miwa crossed her arms and raised her tail, her fangs growing slightly – all clear signs of annoyance.

"I wanna try." She hissed, "Me wanna be a ninja!" Leo chuckled and put his hand upon her head, allowing her to nuzzle into it.

"One day, Miwa. You'll be a great ninja." In an instant the fangs vanished and a smile returned, "I promise you, I will make sure you are the best ninja the Hamato clan has ever seen." Leo felt his heart melt a little as his daughter – his own flesh and blood – grinned, her tiny face splitting into a wide smile as her eyes sparkled in pure happiness at the promise.

"Train!" Miwa's smile straightened, and before Leo could react, his daughter had thrown her entire weight into his plastron, causing him to topple backwards and land ungracefully on his shell with Miwa's form sitting happily on top of him. Before he could help himself, Leo found himself laughing – which, admittedly, wasn't the best response from the attack for the year old took it as an encouragement to continue playing rough – beginning to punch her father in the chest plates with small giggles of her own.

"You little –" The leader grunted as the fists bounced off his front harmlessly, and returned a couple of taps of his own to his daughter, joining her in her laughter.

"Now that's something I've missed." A voice from the side of the dojo caused Leo to spin his head round quickly – worried that he'd woken someone, yet the grin on his brother's face told him there was no grudge for the noise. Sitting up, clutching Miwa close to his chest so not to knock her to the floor, Leo sat up and as soon as he released her, the half snake, half turtle returned to punching her father.

"Missed what?" Leo replied with a grin, "The laughing or the fact I'm getting beaten up by someone smaller than me?" He teased, nodding to Raph's height. Thankfully, said turtle took the joke the right way and moved over to Leo's side. The eldest corrected his daughter's stance as she continued her game and Raph laughed.

"Both." He looked down at Miwa, who paused long enough to get a look at her uncle before returning to attacking her father. "I'm sorry I haven't come to talk yet, but I'm still…" Raph shrugged, "I mean… Shell, Leo – one of my brothers is now a father?" The eldest looked up and was relieved to see that his brother's eyes were light and accepting rather than disproving.

"And you're an uncle." He pointed out, taking Miwa's hands in his own so the little fighter wouldn't hurt herself.

"Man, now I really feel old." Raph sat down beside his brother, "but seriously, bro –" yet before Raph could become serious, Miwa hissed and pulled away from Leo, who quickly gestured Raph to move back.

"Be quiet and stay _still_!" He hissed, as his daughter's eyes narrowed and her arms began to stretch, becoming gradually thinner and a lighter shade of green while her hands morphed into angry looking snake heads.

"Hush, Miwa." Leo cooed, placing a hand out, "Calm your mind. Come to me…" For a moment, Leo worried he would have to wake Karai, yet thankfully, the child blinked – he narrow eyes widening as she noticed her transformed hands, then her face gradually crumpled and she began to cry. "Oh, sweetie…" Leo breathed, pulling Miwa towards him and began rubbing circles into her shell with one hand as the other held her tight, rocking her gently. "Hush now. You're safe. Dada's here." As he spoke, he was relieved to see the snake head merging back into fingers as her arms became narrow once again and as he leant back to get a look at her face, he was pleased to see Miwa's eyes were no longer slits. All signs were positive. The attack was over.

Still holding his child close, Leo turned back to the flabbergasted Raphael and hurriedly explained in a low voice – so not to disturb Miwa.

"It's Karai's unusual mutation that causes these shifts," he rambled, "she's bound to grow out of it once she learns control – but like Karai, she can partly shift forms…"

"And the issue about venom?" Raph muttered, noticing the puncture marks covering his brother's limbs. Leo shrugged.

"It can be stopped by the healing hands techniques, but I've built up a tolerance for it… Once again she'll learn." He looked down once more as Miwa began to snore softly. After her attacks, she always became exhausted and fell asleep. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to see that, but if she's tired –" Raph held a hand up.

"I don't care. She's family." The serenity in his voice made Leo blink. "It's just… _Great_ to have you back, bro, and seeing you like this…" he shrugged, "happy, enjoying life, not stressed – with Miwa… It's good to see."

Leo nodded, almost at a loss for words.

"Raph…" He struggled for the right words, "About before… About the things I said…" His eyes grew apologetic. "It was out of hand. There was just so much going on –"

"It doesn't matter." Raph butted in. Leo felt his eyes widen, making his brother grin, "Yeah, you heard me right. We were both out of hand, and I'm sorry as well. But something was gonna give. The amount of times I've spoken to Splinter about it all." Raph's eyes revealed the shadow of guilt that had been held onto for so long, "He told me that we were all trapped in our own lives and it was only a matter of time until we went for each other's throats…"

Leo took this in. For the past year he had dreamed about this moment, facing his brother after such a bad disagreement – yet this was more than could ever ask for. There was so much he wanted to say – what he could say – yet he pushed all the comments aside that the old Leo who went into the jungle would have said, and offered something only the new Leo could do.

"You want to hold her? She won't bite." He added with a grin. His directly younger brother's eyes clearly read yes. Deep down, Raph was a big softie – and having a child around, was bound to cause him to want to interact, so without waking the young mutant, Leo lowered his daughter into his brother's arms, and as soon as she touched his skin – Miwa curled up to Raph, her tail twisting around his arm and her face turning up into a smile.

"She trusts you." Leo smiled warmly, confirming Raph's silent hopes. "She understands you're family." At the confirmation, the shorter of the turtles smiled widely, his emerald eyes softening even more.

"She's something else." He whispered as he began to rock Miwa like he had seen Leo do earlier. Yet as the little mutant moved slightly in her uncle's arms, the edges of her shell became more prominent, causing Raph to frown. "How'd she…?" But Leo shook his head, his maskless cheeks turning crimson as a wave of guilt washed over him as the memories of the troublesome little baby came back to mind.

"When she began to move around by herself – she felt limited by the cave we were camping in and went to climb down the rocks." Raph raised an eye ridge, causing Leo put up his hands defensively, "Hey, I don't know why, but she's like a three year old and she's only one. She was independent from a young age…" But his gaze moved to Raph's own shoulder where the thick crack was a constant reminder of how slowly shells healed – sometimes never fully repairing. "But she slipped and bounced down the rocks –" seeing the worry in his brother's face, Leo quickly added, "she can react her arms and head into her shell like we can, and her tail is much thicker skin than normal, so she wraps it around her shell as an extra layer of protection. She wasn't actually hurt, just..." The turtle gestured at the cracks. "But she thought it was great fun." His laugh was hollow, "So she kept doing it. Bouncing down those rocks before me and Karai could do anything…"

"And I thought Mike was weird." Raph muttered.

"True. But when she realised what had happened to her shell, it was too late. The damage was done. She threw a tantrum…" Leo shrugged. "But kid's sometimes have to learn the hard way…" Absent mindedly, he ran a finger up his daughter's cheek, then rested his palm on top of her head, causing her to smile in Raph's arms. Said turtle's face broke into another grin, causing Leo to flush. He still felt weird returning to his brothers as a parent – even more so acting like one around them. As if reading his thoughts, Raph offered a question.

"So what's it like?" The eldest thought about it for a long moment then answered with one word.

"Stressful."

For a moment, Raph just stared, but slowly he broke into silent laughter – his eyes watering with the effort of trying not to burst into full blown laughter which would disturb the half turtle, half snake mutant in his arms. Eventually he managed to control himself and wipe his eyes with one hand while supporting Miwa with the other.

"Gonna be honest," he choked out, "I was _not_ expecting that!" Leo cocked his head and raised an eye ridge.

"Then Raphael – I believe it was about time you understood." With a cheeky wink, Leo stood and moved towards the entrance of the dojo, leaving Raph seeming like a deer trapped in the headlights.

"You can't – what if – how do I –" He stammered, yet the elder brother waved an arm over his head.

"Just keep her happy. She'll probably want a fight when she wakes up."

"Wait!" Raph pleaded, the stress of being in charge of a troublesome child suddenly settling in, "Where are you going?" Leo looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"I, dear brother, am going to take a shower and enjoy a little bit of me time." Without another word, the leader walked out, a grin plastered over his face. He needed to just take a short break without the constant worry of what his daughter was up to, and once cleaned up, he could even grab a cup of tea and take one to his partner. Besides, Miwa would be in capable hands until he returned.

In all fairness, he way more concerned for Raph's wellbeing, Leo thought rubbing his plastron, that kid could punch…

 **Here you go, have another segment of Miwa's antics while her father and uncle are trying to be serious!**

 **Please tell me your thoughts as if you want to see something, I can try and accommodate it.**

 **NEXT CHAPTER NAME:** **Announcement.**

 **OVERVIEW: Could there soon be a another sound of little feet around the lair?!**

 **LL99 out.**


	5. Announcement

**Chapter 4**

 **Announcement**

 **Raph P.O.V**

After only a couple of weeks of his elder brother coming back to the lair, Raph had a sudden realisation while everyone was sitting around the breakfast table.

"We haven't told the Mighty Mutanimals." He stated while casually taking a bite out of his toast, acting oblivious to the stares he was receiving. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Donnie and Mikey swap a confused look, Splinter's ears twitch and Leo and Karai freeze, both of their gazes moving from their daughter in her mother's lap. "I'm just saying." Raph shrugged. "I haven't seen Mona in, what –" he paused for a moment, calculating it in his head, "about five weeks now. They've been on a set of stakeouts so haven't been in contact for a while. We should all meet up." There was a short silence before someone finally managed to find their words.

"Um, Raph… What the shell are you talking about?" Donnie eventually managed, causing Raph to blink. He was sure his brothers would gather what he was on about. Waving a finger at the (for once) quiet infant at their table he finished off his breakfast with a large bite, drawing the silence out more.

"None of our friends know that Leo's a parent." Now he could barely hide his growing grin, his brother's rapidly reddening face indicating how Leo had in fact considered the eventuality of telling others about the awkward situation, and had failed to mention it.

"Although that is true, Raphael, that we must inform our allies of our new family member, we must be cautious of the compartmentalisation of this information for all our safety." Now it was Raph's turn to be confused.

"Meaning _what,_ Sensei?" Leo, seeming to seize the opportunity to offer any argument against the idea, quickly spoke up.

"He means, Raph – that if all our enemies knew there was a child in our mist – my daughter, at that – then people like the Shredder would want to hunt her down." He picked up Miwa from Karai's lap and the little mutant wrapped her tail around his arm, her wide eyes looking up at him as if she understood his meaning, "Imagine if Shredder got his hands on her. Imagine what he would be able to force me – _us_ – to do just so she wouldn't get hurt…" In all fairness, Raph hadn't considered that at all.

Splinter nodded in agreement, stroking his beard in thought.

"This you must emphasise to your friends. Miwa _must_ remain a secret."

"Hai sensei." Everyone chorused.

Raph smiled, despite this whole fuss over 'compartmentalisation' or whatever, he was going to get the chance to see Mona again. It had been too long.

As soon as he left the table and returned to his room, he picked up his phone and sent a text.

"Hey, babe. Soz haven't been in contact 4 while. Got big news. Can we all come over? There's someone u ALL need 2 meet."

He left it a couple of minutes, waiting for Mona to work out her earth phone as she always did – the technology here far inferior to that she was used to on her home world. Eventually there was a small ding, and Raph checked the message.

"I always have time for my noble warrior. We shall be waiting."

With a smile, Raph quickly replied with a time to expect them, and rushed off to gather his brothers and call over April and Casey. He wanted them all present to witness Leo's embarrassment.

 **Karai P.O.V**

With parental instincts at an all-time high after her father's dire warning to the Hamato clan at breakfast, Karai remained in the middle of the group as they ran through the sewers – Miwa clinging to her shoulders, certain she was part of some bizarre game of 'horsey.' In front of her, Raph, Donnie and Casey led the way through the complex sewer system – or more accurately, Donnie's gadget leading them all – while Leo ran beside her and Mikey and April following behind. The run was only short, yet Karai felt the blood pound in her ears, a reminder of how out of practise she was. Between being mutated and giving birth and caring for a hyperactive mutant child, training had taken a back seat and whenever she and Leo managed five minutes to spar, it was often playful and far from the rigorous training she had been subjected to under the shredder's 'care.'

Within the minutes, the group arrived under the Mutanimals' warehouse, and within moments, everyone climbed the ladder and emerged inside the building.

"Mona?" Raph shouted out, "Slash? Anyone here?"

"Raphael!" A cry responded, and the giant Salamandrian warrior emerged from somewhere upstairs, leaping over the banister and neatly landing before her boyfriend and engulfing him in an embrace. Despite being filled in on what had happened in space and been forewarned by Leo at how affectionate the couple were, Karai couldn't help but be shocked by their greeting, partly due to the fact Raph wasn't the overly sentimental type, but also due to her and Leo never acting that pathetic in public.

One by one the other Mutanimals emerged, all of which Karai only knew by name but, as if sensing her confusion to the new and frankly strange mutants, Leo quickly whispered who each person was.

The giant turtle called Slash (who had once been Raph's pet according to Leo and had even tried to kill everyone when first mutated – something Karai could relate to) came up to Leo and shook him by the hand, the smile on his face telling him he was glad he was back in the city. Then his eyes landed upon Karai. And then Miwa.

"Leonardo, who are these two?" He questioned, seemingly polite, but Karai could smell his distrust. Despite wearing casual jeans and a black top, Karai guessed that there was something still assassin like about her which put the turtle off.

"Um, Slash, everyone – I would like you to meet Karai and Miwa. My… um…"

"I'm Leo's partner, and this is our daughter." Karai jumped in, savouring the sudden shock on the mutants' collective faces as she shook Slash's large hand. She could see Leo's red face and rolled her eyes, amazed how he could act so fearless against an enemy yet melt into a completely insecure scaredy-cat the moment it came to facing family and friends. He was unbelievable.

Surprisingly, it was the alien – Mona Lisa – who spoke up first.

"Roka roka!" She threw her head back and smiled at Karai, "I'm glad me and Raphael are not the only ones who have had success in mating!"

The room fell silent and Karai saw Mikey's eyes widen and his mouth creep upwards into a giant grin, as if he were about to explode in laughter. Donnie's face suddenly went blank and Leo just stared at Raph in shock. Raph – on the other hand – was looking at Mona gobsmacked.

"Wait – what are you –"

"We shall be having a child, Raphael. Our own little warrior."

Karai stifled a laugh, knowing how inappropriate it would be in this situation, but from the looks on Raph's face, this was the first he had heard of this.

"Mona…" He whispered faintly, "Could we… Um… Talk?"

"Of course. This is why I waited till we were in person." But as Raph inclined his head sharply sideways, Mona seemed to understand the meaning and the two hurriedly moved out of earshot.

Slash cleared his throat.

"Well, this has certainly been… uh, _interesting_. Could anyone else use a drink?"

It was fair to say all hands shot up.

 **Raph P.O.V**

As he followed Mona Lisa to her sleeping quarters, Raph felt a million questions swirl through his mind. _Could it be true? Would he be ready? How could she be certain? What would Splinter say?_ But most of all: _why the hell did she bring it up like that in front of everyone?!_ Since Leo had moved away for his ' _training period_ ' Raph and learnt to control his temper so he rarely lost his cool any more, yet as he kept replaying what Mona had said, he found himself barely keeping it together. The moment she shut the door behind him, he turned on her – and despite hating himself for sounding harsh, he exploded.

"What the hell, Mona? In front of _everybody?_ Are you serious? I mean couldn't you have at least let me know or… or…" As he watched his girlfriend's face fall, he felt his anger rapidly vanish. He collapsed onto the bed, his head in his hands. "I'm sorry." He muttered, "You know I can't help it sometimes, it's just…"

"Just nothing, Raphael." Mona sat beside him and put her tail around his waist. He reached for her hand and took it in his own, hoping he could make up for his outburst. He knew he hadn't been fair. "I should have told you sooner," she continued, looking crest fallen, "I keep forgetting I am not on my home world any more. We Salamandrians announce our relationships and any mating successes publicly in front of all our family and friends. Even our work colleagues. I forgot that you do not do the same here on Earth. For that I am sorry." Raph looked up and met her eyes, hating the sadness he had caused being so clear to read.

"No, Mona. I need to apologise." Raph admitted. "You have your culture, and I respect that."

"Oh Raphael." Mona smiled and the two hugged, both clearly relieved that they had avoided a potentially volatile situation. But that left the obvious question.

"So you _are_ pregnant?" Raph carefully asked, attempting keep his voice level. Mona nodded.

"Are you alright with that?"

Raph shrugged.

"Who knows. I think I'm actually in shock." He laughed lightly, making Mona relax. In all honestly he had secretly longed for a child, and when Leo introduced him to Miwa, this desire had grown stronger, yet he had never dared to dream that it would become a reality. Mona was an alien, he was a mutant… Who knew they would even be… _compatible_ … Yet here they were. Eventually he managed to strengthen his voice and continue, "But honestly, once I saw Leo with Miwa, I knew this would be something I wanted for us." He smiled. "Man, I'm turning soft."

"Well there's a battle we must fight still, my warrior." That caught Raph's attention. With a grin, he pulled out his sai and stood.

"Who is it this time?" he asked eagerly, but his excitement faded as Mona smiled. He'd been had.

"Well you _have_ just run away from your brothers to talk, so they may want a more… _Earth_ style announcement." Grudgingly Raph sheathed his sai and muttered.

"So what's our strategy?"

 **Karai P.O.V**

"And that was when we decided me and Miwa were fine to come back to the city." Karai finished, taking the drink from Slash with a smile. A beer. Not her favourite drink, but it would do.

"That's epic, man!" Mondo exclaimed, licking his eyeballs as if to emphasise his point, "You two got to travel! Man, why don't we do that sometime?" The monkey – Rockwell – rolled his eyes and swapped a look with Donnie.

"I have to admit, I am fascinated by – if I may be so blunt – the ability to successfully reproduce." The doc peered at Miwa, currently entranced in a game involving climbing around Slash's shoulders, winding herself around his spikes, much to his amusement.

Karai looked to Leo, yet he was pretending to be completely absorbed in watching Miwa and Slash, leaving Karai to face the onslaught of questions alone.

"No idea about the science rubbish. You and Don can work it out – but we will _not_ be sharing every detail of our sex lives for your gratification." She noted with a smirk Leo choked and then subtly covered it up with a cough.

Rockwell held up his hands, also apparently unnerved.

"My apologies, Karai – I was merely wondering for scientific purposes."

"I suppose it's because Leo's a turtle mutant mixed with human DNA while Karai is human mixed with snake DNA." Donnie cut in, "But if Karai was a 'normal' human…" The sound of a door opening made Donnie lapse into silence as all gazes looked up onto the balcony where Raph and Mona had vanished.

"Ten bucks he chickens out." Mikey whispered to Casey, and a quick handshake confirmed the bet. Then the couple appeared. Ever keen to get his prize, the youngest of the turtle brothers began to clap loudly, and before anyone could stop him, Miwa joined in too, playing along. Above them, Raph froze, but he looked to Mona and the two made their way back down to the group.

"Soooo…?" Mikey teased, "What do you have to say, Raph? Or am I to call you – _da-da Raphie_?" For a moment, Karai was ready to jump between Raph and Mikey as the hot head momentarily looked like he would jump at his brother, yet amazingly, he took a breath and put on an awkward smile.

"Actually, yeah. But call me " _da-da Raphie_ " and you'll have that ten bucks you bet on me shoved up your –"

"CONGRATULATIONS!" April shouted before Raph could finish, glaring as Casey laughed and took the money from Mikey.

"Another round!" Casey cheered, and once all had a bottle in hand, everyone raised their beers.

"May you both be happy." Leo raised his beer. Miwa slithered down from Slash's shoulders and landed in her father's lap, reaching for the bottle. He laughed and shook his head. "No. You're not going to start out like your uncle." He teased, shooting Raph a look, but when Karai raised an eyebrow, he explained. "Splinter told us that when we were little Raph found a bottle of _sake_ and drank half of it before Splinter found him passed out on the floor." The room erupted in laughter, leaving Raph slightly red but with a smile on his face as well. Karai moved over to her partner and tapped their bottles together.

"To new families." She whispered.

"New families and new futures." Leo muttered back with a smile. "And long may they continue."

 **So there shall be a new member of the Hamato clan soon enough! Any ideas what the kid will look like? Ideas on gender / name / ammount of kids?!**

 **Next chapter Name:** _ **Alien Mothers and Names**_

 **As always, reviews are appreciated!**

 **LL99 out. :)**


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